YOWICAN disputed presidential election tears CAN apart

The past few weeks have been quite stormy for leaders of the Christian Association of Nigeria(CAN) following emerging developments over the disputed election of the youth wing of the body, reports Sunday Oguntola

Top officials of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) are at loggerheads over the leadership crisis rocking the youth wing of the body (YOWICAN).

The leadership crisis, which started as far back as January 2015, escalated last month with the election of a new executive council without the consent and handover of the outgoing executives.

YOWICAN’s outgoing president, Engr. Dan Kazai, faulted the election on the ground that his tenure was still running. According to him, since he was inaugurated on November 2015, his three-year tenure should end by November 2018.

Kazai told our correspondent last week the election that produced Apostle Nyeneime Andy of the Christian Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria/Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (CPFN/PFN) bloc is an illegality that will not stand.

He declared himself the substantive YOWICAN president, saying he couldn’t have been succeeded since he did not hand over. Kazai said: “I am still in office because I have not handed over. I still run my office and nobody has been using it but me. I still have my signatory on all the official documents.”

The election, according to the Adamawa-born Kazai, is null and void because he applied for an injunction restraining CAN from conducting the exercise from an Abuja High Court.

The original summons, the YOWICAN helmsman said was signed for by National Secretary of CAN, Rev Musa Asake as well as the National Director of Education, Women and Youth Development, Elder Biodun Sanyaolu.

“They should be aware that as long as there is a case in court, all actions must be suspended until it is dispensed it. It is sad to note that CAN officials who should mirror justice and fairness can sign for a court document and still go ahead with the exercise in defiance,” Kazai stated.

He alleged certain forces in the apex Christian body are bent on imposing people they can use for their clandestine plans ahead of the 2019 general elections.

“They want to get me out of the way for someone they can use. They want to use CAN structure to make money from politicians next year,” he alleged.

But Andy told our correspondents Kazai is fighting a lost battle for himself. “The truth is he is alone. He is the only one that has refused to hand over. His secretary and assistant have handed over, including others.

“They even took us to the CAN President on Wednesday for introduction as the new YOWICAN executives. So, he is on his own and fighting for himself. Others have officially handed over to us.

“I have my office and so do other executives. The same Kazai has a history of leaving every post he held with rancor. He did the same when he was YOWICAN chairman in Nasarawa,” Andy stated.

A festering wound

Checks by our correspondent revealed the troubles with YOWICAN started in 2014 when national election was called for. Barrister Samuel Kwamkur, the leading presidential candidate, was coasting home but forces within his ECWA/TEKAN bloc denied him nomination.

On Election Day, ECWA/TEKAN delegates met and decided to nominate Kazai to represent the bloc. Kwamkur, who had the backings of many outside his bloc, realised he had failed a basic requirement to stand for election: bloc nomination.

Kazai was massively voted but Kwamkur, a lawyer, headed to court, a development that embarrassed the CAN leadership and forced many peace meetings.

At the end of the interventions, an out-of-court settlement was arrived at, an arrangement that leapfrogged Kwamkur to his current office as National Legal Adviser.

Kazai was eventually sworn in on November 11, 2015, few months after the other executive members have started operations in January. It is on the basis of the inauguration date that he is contesting the length of his tenure, arguing it has been cut short by almost 11 months.

Investigations revealed his fate was sealed at the last National Executive Council (NEC) meeting of CAN in Abuja where the National Director of Education, Women and Youth Development, Elder Biodun Sanyaolu, presented a memo that was accepted by the house.

The memo, insiders confided, requested for a go-ahead for the exercise after the adoption of the 37-year-old limit for candidates.

Kazai, it was learnt, avoided the meeting knowing he would have no influence whatsoever in the final decision.

Penultimate Wednesday, Sanyaolu followed up with a private memo to CAN President, His Eminence Rev Dr Supo Ayokunle.

The memo, obtained by our correspondent, reads: “Your Eminence Sir,

“I humbly wish to inform you of the following as regards the coming YOWICAN election:

“a. This afternoon, we received a notice of originating summons filed by Dan Kazai whereby he has applied for an injunction to restrain CAN from conducting the election of Saturday 27th January. The case is to be heard on Tue 31st January at the High court in Abuja. No injunction order yet pls.

“b. We have completed the screening of the candidates. Out of the three candidates for the Chairmanship, the one nominated by CPFN/PFN has been disqualified on the ground that he’s 8months above 37years which is the age limit as approved by NEC.

“c. Following the publication of Guardian of 24th January, page 6 wherein, Dan Kazai claimed that the leadership of CAN has been given 5bn and has adopted PMB for a 2nd term, and that he’s the only one that opposed the adoption; a reason why we want to conduct election 10months into the end of his tenure, in order to punish him. I met with Senator Phillip from Nasarawa to explain the whole story and to debunk the falsehood.

“After due consultation with the Director Legal, we are informing you of our decision to conduct the election as approved by NEC.

Many thanks for your support sir.”

Brewing troubles

Andy’s initial suspension was upturned by the screening committee, much to the annoyance of Sanyaolu, findings revealed.

Also, NEC was alleged to have accepted the proposal by Sanyaolu that YOWICAN presidency should be based on rotation to mitigate disputes.

The Organisation of African Instituted Church (OAIC) and Catholic Secretariat of Nigeria (CSN) were the only two blocs yet to have a shot at the youth presidency.

But this too was ditched few hours to the election. Realising two vital components of his memo had been tampered with, a visibly angry left Abuja on the morning of the election for his base in Lagos.

He was reported to have told people he would have nothing to do with the election, claiming some forces were out to manipulate the process.

Without the National Director constitutionally empowered to conduct the election, the lot fell on Committee members of the Directorate to take over.

Two out of the five-man committee, it was gathered, decided the election would go. They carried out the exercise that produced a winner with Andy scoring over 50 votes.

Sanyaolu, it was learnt, resigned his appointment as National Director last week deeply touched by the sudden changes without his inputs in the exercise.

A competent source told our correspondent Sanyaolu presented his letter to Ayokunle in Lagos during a parley with OAIC National leaders.

Pleas by Ayokunle on him to consider the backlashes of such move did not yield efforts. Sanyaolu told our correspondent last Friday that he refused to conduct the election because the guideline stating contestants must be 37 years was not followed religiously.

“I am a sticker for rules and democrat. The rule says a contestant must be 37 but the disqualified candidate was 37 years and eight months. In that circumstance, he shouldn’t have been in the race.”

He however said he would present Andy as winner of the election to the NEC meeting this week in Abuja. “I have nothing against him. I will present him to NEC. If they say 37 is the same as being 37 and eight months, that’s fine by me.”

Sanyaolu confirmed his resignation was upturned by the OAIC bloc that elected him for the directorate, stating that he had no choice than to follow the dictates of his bloc.

Echoes of discord

Aside from the resignation of Sanyaolu, checks revealed the disputed YOWICAN presidential election has further deepened the crisis of confidence in the umbrella Christian body.

National Secretary of the body, Rev Musa Asake, told our correspondent that he wouldn’t be able to say much because he has been sidelined in the affairs of the organisation.

“I don’t get to know much of what happens these days again in CAN. I have been here since 2012 but since the new leadership came on board, it has been more or less a one-man show.

“Nobody told me what happened during the election officially because the Director said he wouldn’t report to me. They all report directly to the President, even when the constitution says it has to be to the National Secretary.

“So, I am just here more or less a ceremonial secretary because I don’t know much of what happens at the secretariat again,” he stressed.

The Vice President of CAN, Elder Professor Joseph Otubu, in a memo to some selected church leaders, also alleged imposition of candidates in the just-concluded exercise, describing it unconstitutional.

In the memo, Otubu said: “I want to draw your attention to a just concluded youth election for the position of Chairman of YOWICAN.

‘The candidate of PFN for the election was disqualified on the basis of age limit but Rev Onifade (Senior Special Assistant to CAN President on Ecumenism) insisted that the candidate must be allowed to run for the election.

“In reaction to Onifade’s insistence, Elder Sanyolu who is the Director of Youth in CAN resigned his position and did not take part in the election.

“The duo of Ayokunle/ Onifade allowed the election to take place and the candidate from PFN emerged as winner of this unconstitutional election.

“My concern is why a young man will spend so much money to render service as Chairman of YOWICAN? When did money become the most important thing to church leaders?

“As it stands now Christians have been brought to believe that CAN elections are heavily monetised and whoever has a very deep pocket can emerge winner. I can longer see the difference between the behaviour of politicians and Christian leaders in CAN.

“When we talk of CAN leaders today, Onifade literally runs CAN with the Confidential Secretary (Mrs. Eunice Araoye). How can a Confidential Secretary that was appropriated by Rev Ayokunle literally take on the position of a General Secretary?

“So when we refer to CAN leadership as it stands today, it is Ayokunle, Onifade, the Treasurer and the confidential secretary.”

When contacted, Senior Special Assistant on Media to Ayokunle, Rev Bayo Oladeji, denied all the allegations against the CAN President, saying they were handiworks of disgruntled elements afraid of the reforms being carried out by the number one Christian citizen.

“He has nothing to do with the election. He was not even in the country when the exercise took place.

“As a democrat, he allowed the Director to present his memo to NEC, which was exhaustively deliberated. He merely allowed what NEC decided to take effect.

“He has no interest in who becomes YOWICAN President because he has more serious issues to attend to,” he stated.